Veteran’s Corner 6-20-19

Pledged by President Donald J. Trump as part of his administration’s commitment to reforming the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), as of May 14, the White House VA Hotline has answered more than 250,195 calls since it went live June 1, 2017. The hotline, 855-948-2311, serves Veterans, their families, caregivers and survivors by giving them a direct, nonemergency, contact line available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year with agents — the majority of whom are Veterans or from a Veteran family — who are trained to address general and common VA inquiries. “The White House VA Hotline is quickly becoming VA’s front door for questions or concerns about VA and community resources,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “This milestone is a testament to VA’s commitment to improving the Veteran experience.” While Veterans are encouraged to use existing VA contact centers, the hotline offers an alternative “always the right number’” approach, transferring calls when needed to VA subject matter experts, such as the Veterans Crisis Line. The hotline serves as VA’s front door to listen to Veterans’ experiences, identify trends in Veteran feedback and resolve Veterans health, benefits and services concerns anywhere in the department. More than half the calls to the hotline are general inquiries about VA’s care, benefits and memorial services. Concerns that cannot be resolved immediately are entered as cases, accessible to VA Offices of Client Relations. To date, 94% of the total 157,346 cases created have been resolved. According to recent data from April, the average wait time to speak to a live agent was nine seconds, with calls typically lasting about 15 minutes. About 1% of all calls were compliments. For more information about the hotline, visit www.va.gov/ve/whvahotline.asp. Veterans, their families, caregivers and survivors can call the White House VA Hotline at 855-948-2311. For more information, contact Sandra at the Veterans Service Office at 602 Strong Ave on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10am to 3pm, or call 365-3612.